Ryoma watched as Atobe and Ryouko disappeared among the crowd. He disliked letting her go with Atobe but he didn't have the confidence to look at her in the face at the moment.
He knew the reason for that accident. It was blatantly obvious. She saved him from getting hit by the ball. Even with his skills, he wouldn't be able to propel that shot away properly... Not with that angle. The fact that he couldn't maneuver the right way because Ryuzaki was standing behind him also added to the situation. He couldn't let a girl get hit so what choice did he have but to take it himself?
Ryouko stated the reason why she blocked the ball and it matched with his interpretation of the situation. Well, she said that it was for both him and Ryuzaki but nevertheless, she still saved him. Whatever her reasons may be, she still got hurt in his place. That is what he cannot accept.
All of a sudden, someone approached him. "Ry-Ryoma-kun..." The tiny voice said. Ryoma knew perfectly to whom it belonged to. A small flare of anger lit up in his chest as he turned around to face her.
He tried his best not to look agitated. After all, it wasn't her fault that Ryouko jumped in the way of that ball. It would be unfair to get mad at her, but still...
Sakuno looked up at Ryoma's eyes hesitantly. "I... I just want to thank you... For shielding me from the ball... I'm really sorry. I was stupid to try and return that smash. But my body moved on its own and... I'm just really sorry." She said, her tone full of remorse and regret.
"Then you should've listened. I already told you from the start to let me handle it." Ryoma said, his tone a little harsh. He stopped himself. He was supposed to hold it in, but his anger is leaking. If Ryuzaki didn't do that, Ryouko wouldn't have gotten hurt. Although it is not her fault, she is partly responsible for what happened.
Sakuno's eyes watered. "I'm sorry... I really am..." She tried to hide the tears but he has already seen it.
Ryoma felt bad for making her cry. "Next time, think before you act. That's the best quality that a tennis player should have. You want to be good at tennis, don't you? You practice diligently everyday. If you want to be better, you should keep that in mind." He said before turning around to leave.
He calmed himself down by taking a few deep breaths. Getting mad at someone will not make that ugly wound disappear from Ryouko's back. Besides, it wasn't really Ryuzaki he is so mad at... It was himself.
~~~
"Keigo!" Ryouko complained as she was being dragged through the hall of the white building where the coaches were staying. She barely had enough time to detach the racket from her hand before they left the tennis courts. The heels were digging at her ankles and she held the skirt as she half-ran, half-walked to match Atobe's hurried pace. It was as if he is running away from someone.
Ryouko couldn't take it anymore and she forcibly pulled her hand away from him. "Hold on a sec, seriously... You're hurting me." She said in an annoyed tone as she rubbed the wrist he had been gripping tightly. He actually left a red mark around it.
Atobe looked at her as if he just realized what he had been doing. He figured he should apologize but he doesn't want to. "This way." He said instead.
Ryouko rotated her wrist as she followed him, looking quite irritated. "What is wrong with him?" She wondered, throwing daggers at the back of his head.
Atobe led her to a rectangular room with 'Infirmary' written over the door in swirling, cursive letters. It was equipped with bunk beds and had the vibe of a school clinic and a hospital room at the same time. The curtains blowing from the windows revealed the great picturesque scenery outside.
"Sit down on the bed while I go get some medicine." Atobe told her.
Ryouko raised an eyebrow. "You mean, you're the one who's going to treat my wound?" She said skeptically. "You are?" She added.
"Did you have to say 'you' twice? Sheesh. I do know some basic sanitation techniques like normal people do. It's common sense to know how to sterilize a wound." He snapped, making a face.
"Oh right. I forgot you were a boyscout." She replied.
Atobe turned an annoyed glare at her. "A mountain—"
"Mountaineering expert... I get it." Ryouko said before he can finish, throwing her hands in the air.
Atobe rolled his eyes and concentrated on the task of getting a first aid kit. He found one inside a cabinet, complete with all the things he would need. He walked towards the bed where Ryouko is sitting and rounded to the end where her back is facing. He sat down on the cushion.
"Stay still." He said as he set the kit on a space between them and started taking out the saline solutions and iodine bottles.
"Is it gonna hurt?" Ryouko asked.
Atobe raised an eye, pouring alcohol all over his hands. "Why? You're scared?" He replied almost teasingly as he applied some saline on a cotton.
"No." Ryouko denied, a little louder than she intended. "I'm just asking." She added.
Atobe smirked and began wiping the diagonal scratch on her back with the cotton he prepared. Ryouko flinched a little. "That's cold." She said.
"I have to wipe it clean first. There's some dirt on the sides from when you fell. I won't apply alcohol on it. It will burn the skin. Sterilizing with iodine will be best." He told her, applying the medicine on a small gauze pad.
"Is it deep?" Ryouko asked.
"No. It's pretty narrow." He answered.
Ryouko raised the corner of her lip. "Is it gonna leave a mark?" She asked.
"The skin got cut so yes, it'll probably leave a mark." He said as he started applying the iodine on the wound.
"That's gonna be a problem. My Mom will kill me the moment she sees it." She mumbled thoughtfully.
"If you put the right ointment on it as it heals, it'll fade out better. Or maybe ask a dermatologist what you should do so there would be no mark. That's what I always do." Atobe commented.
Ryouko nodded in understanding, taking a mental note. Her mother usually makes her wear gowns that expose her back and it won't be presentable if there's a scar on it. She have the duty to uphold the family name.
"Why did you block the ball?" He suddenly asked.
"I already told you the reason. If I didn't do that, Ryoma and Ryuzaki-san will get hurt." She replied. She felt kind of annoyed that she had to explain herself twice.
"You're lying." Atobe said.
"Huh?" She answered, feeling perplexed.
"In that angle, the girl couldn't have gotten hurt. The ball will only hit Echizen. You didn't do it for the two of them. You did it only for Echizen." He said, cutting small pieces of micropore tape.
Ryouko's eyes faltered. Sure enough, she didn't really think of Ryuzaki Sakuno at that moment. All she thought about was that Ryoma might get hurt. "And so? What difference does it make? Either way, I blocked the ball to save someone. End of conversation." She answered, trying not to sound in denial.
Atobe kept his mouth shut. "It does make a difference. At least it does to me." He thought quite bitterly.
"Besides, even if it's not Ryoma in that situation, I could've done the same. I would because that's the right thing to do. You don't pick the person you help. Everyone deserves some saving if the situation gets unfavorable." Ryouko explained, but it was like she was convincing herself rather than trying to make Atobe see her side of things.
"Fine. I get it." Atobe told her. He doesn't want to hear her excuses. Anyway, what he is suspecting between Echizen and Ryouko might just be the figment of his imagination. It must be. It should be.
They went silent as Atobe continued dressing the wound. Ryouko wondered what is currently going on inside his mind. She had been alone with Atobe for a few instances but the atmosphere was never that uncomfortable. Maybe it's because he's treating her injury and kept cornering her with questions... Put those two together, and the result would not be a comfortable situation.
Ryouko was a bit surprised when it was him who striked up a conversation first. "By the way... What is with the name 'Ryuu'?" He suddenly asked.
"Huh?" Ryouko asked back, not really understanding the question.
"When you fought me in that match on one of Seigaku's courts and everyone mistook you for a boy, you used the name 'Ryuu'. I'm just wondering where that came from." He answered.
"Oh. That." Ryouko said, recalling the memory. A smile crept on her lips. "It's 'Ryuu' for 'Dragon'. Overseas, they called my grandfather the Great Red Dragon of the East... Akai Ryuu no Suzuki (Suzuki of the Red Dragon) is his nickname amongst good friends and rivals in the Japanese tennis industry. It wasn't a first that people mistook me for a boy. It happens all the time, especially when I was in America. I actually like that fact. Whenever I play tennis as a boy, I use the name 'Ryuu'. It's like a namesake from my Grandpa." She explained.
"That's quite deep. I didn't expect that." Atobe told her as he pressed a long piece of clean gauze on the wound.
"Yeah. Despite how I look, I'm a deep person. I think a lot and there are more reasons behind my actions and words than most people has." Ryouko replied smugly.
"So is that a way of saying that all the things you do have deep meaning?" Atobe asked, quite amused.
Ryouko merely smiled cheekily in response.
Atobe had finished taping the gauze in place and he closed the first-aid kit. "Done." He told her.
Ryouko set her sleeve back in place on her shoulder. "Thanks." She said and looked at Atobe in a strange way as he returned the kit back to the cabinet. She was smiling slightly and her eyes looked soft.
"Why're you staring at me like that?" He said, a bit flustered inside.
"Nothing... I'm just thinking that you're much more of a nice guy than I thought." She answered.
Atobe snorted and stared back at her with a mischievous sneer. "Who knows? Maybe I'm also a deep person and my actions and words have reasons much more than the eyes can see."
Ryouko jeered back at him. "I'm not staking anything on that..."
"Whatever." Atobe shrugged. He and Ryouko throw insults at each other everyday that it actually feels awkward if they don't say mean things. At first, he felt extremely annoyed and insulted her back as a revenge, but now it felt quite nice and comfortable. It's like a bond that he shared with her.
Atobe noticed that he is smiling at the thought and he pulled himself together. "Enough of this, Keigo. It is absolutely pathetic." He told himself.
"Well..." Ryouko's voice broke into his thoughts. She had already stood up from the bed and is getting ready to leave. "I prefer that you don't change that mean personality. Otherwise, I won't have anyone to bicker with." She smiled teasingly at him. He stared back, blinking.
"I'll go ahead. See you later." Ryouko said as she exited the door.
As Atobe is left alone inside the infirmary, his right hand automatically went to the left side of his chest. He pressed his palm and felt the loud beat there, sounding quite extraordinary.
The only times his heart beat that fast are those exciting moments when he was standing on the court and playing against a worthy opponent. He had no idea that other things can make his heart beat so much. The worse fact is that it is not a 'thing' that is causing the drumming on his chest, but a person — a girl... Albeit a really charming and attractively headstrong one.
~~~
The first thing Ryouko did was run to the Representative's cabin to change her clothes. She slipped out of the wedding dress and donned a light blue polo shirt, buttoning it from the bottom-up. She couldn't pull a t-shirt over her head as she might upset the dressed wound. She had to be careful for a while.
There was only one thing inside her mind as she hurried with dressing up, and it was to find Ryoma as soon as possible. She was worried about that expression he sported back in the tennis court. That face full of guilt and remorse... The self-blame in his bronze-gold eyes... She never thought that she would see that expression again, after almost four long years. And worse, it is her fault again that he had to show such a face.
"Ryoma..." She said as she tied her shoelaces. "You're alright, aren't you?" She mumbled under her breath, her eyes full with concern.
Finally, she was ready to go. On her way out, she bumped onto An, Mami and Miyako.
Mami began to address her. "Ryouko-chan! Are you okay? We saw that scatch on you bac—"
"Sorry. I'll talk to you guys later." She interrupted and went past them in a hurry.
"Ryouko-chan? Where are you going?" Miyako yelled after her as she exited the gate.
"Just somewhere! Don't wait up!" She yelled back and turned to the direction of the tennis courts.
"What's gotten into her?" An asked as she watched Ryouko disappear.
"I dunno." Mami answered.
Ryouko went straight to the courts as fast as she can but only the camp managers were there. Arai and the others were cleaning up the courts and not even one of the players can be seen.
She approached Arai. "Senpai? Did everyone return to their cabins already?" She asked.
"Ryouko! Are you alright? What happened to that wound on your back?" He asked instead of answering. Hayashi and Ikeda joined him.
"It's fine now. I got it treated." She said, looking around.
"If it's your team members that you're looking for, they already got back to their individual cabins to change their clothes." Hayashi told her.
"How about Ryoma? Did he also go back to their cabin?" She asked, looking straight at them.
"Echizen... well... I didn't see him anywhere right after the matches ended. His cabin mates were also looking for him." Ikeda answered.
"Thanks." Ryouko said and started to take off.
"Oi, Ryouko! Will it be alright for you to be running around like that? You should rest up!" Hayashi yelled after her but it's either she didn't hear him or she pretended not to hear.
"What's gotten into her?" Arai asked, wondering why she's in such a hurry.
"The more important question is... What's gotten to her and Echizen..." Ikeda suddenly said.
"Well, yeah. You're right. Why is she looking for him? And what we witnessed in the courts... Just what was that about?" Hayashi replied.
"Those two didn't seem to be close. They barely talk to each other at practice. I've said more to Ryouko in an hour of practice than Echizen does in a whole day. I didn't expect that they're... you know..." Ikeda said and gestured as if embracing the air. "...on hugging terms."
"Well, they're in the same class. And they're the same age. They even have the same circumstances... They're both genius tennis players, intelligent enough to top their class and they both have rude manners of talking. Who knows? Maybe outside the tennis court and the school, they're actually close to each other." Arai commented.
"Or maybe they're more than that." Hayashi said, deep in thought.
"Maybe they're even dating." Ikeda said.
Hayashi and Arai looked at him. "Dating? Yeah, right. You can't be serious." They said skeptically, totally in synch.
"Well, can you blame me? She got hurt because she protected him. And that hug was really tight. Ryouko-chan even patted his head." Ikeda reasoned.
"Ryouko said that she protected BOTH Echizen ad Ryuzaki." Arai pointed out, emphasizing the word.
"Sure, everyone who hugs and pats each other's heads are dating." Hayashi said sarcastically.
Arai tossed a broom at Ikeda. "Just shut up and sweep the court."
Ikeda looked annoyed as he caught it. "I'm just stating my opinion!" He said, his voice full of complaints.
~~~
Ryouko looked around, wondering where Ryoma could be. That white tower is one option. She figured that he must want to be left alone but... She couldn't do that.
"Think, Ryouko. Think." She told herself as she aimlessly walked. A thought suddenly struck her. "Maybe..." She mumbled under her breath. "Just maybe..."
She started running towards the white main building and rounded off the corner.
'Thunk!' 'Thunk!'
Ryouko smiled at the familiar sound that also consoled her whenever she felt depressed. Ryoma, still wearing the black tuxedo of the Mad Hatter, was hitting a tennis ball against the wall of the back of the building.
"Found you." She said and walked towards him.
She cupped one hand at the side of her mouth and yelled. "Hey, oniichan! Are you busy?"
Ryoma stopped rallying the ball and swerved his neck to her direction. "Ryouko?" He said.
"If you're not busy, do you want to play with me?" Ryouko added.
Ryoma gave a small amused smile. "Good. He smiled." Ryouko thought in relief and went towards him as he placed his racket on one of those stones that they sat on, just the night before.
"Oniichan? Where did that come from?" Ryoma said as she sat down next to him.
"Well, I'm born in Tokyo and you're born in America. I've correlated the exact times of our birth and converted it to each other's time zones. You're older than me by three hours." She answered.
"Don't you have something better to do than figure out which one of us is older? It doesn't matter anyway since we have the same birthday." Ryoma replied, quite amused.
"That's exactly why I figured it out. I want to know who's older and if I'm the older one, I'll make it an excuse to get you to speak politely towards me. But then, you're the older one so..." Her words faded out.
"So you didn't say anything because I might boss you around?" Ryoma completed for her.
"Exactly." She replied and gave a small laugh.
"Three hours, huh?" Ryoma murmured.
"To be precise, Three hours and thirty seven minutes." She told him.
"You better call me 'Oniichan' from now on then." Ryoma said jokingly.
"Hell no." Ryouko answered, making a face.
"Why? You said it quite wonderfully a minute ago." He snapped.
"I just did that to get your attention. You're never hearing me call you that way again. That's the first and last." She replied, fixing her hair and twirling it into one huge bundle before hanging it over her shoulder.
It drew Ryoma's attention and he looked at her back. "Is the wound okay?" He asked.
"Yeah. It's fine. It's not even deep. Just a narrow cut. If I'll be careful and have a dermatologist help me as it heals, it won't even leave a mark." She said and turned sideways to look at him. "How about you? Are you okay?"
Ryoma gave a snort. "Me? I'm not even hurt. You took that for me." He said.
Ryouko felt bad for making the conversation swerve that way. She wanted to avoid it too.
"No. Don't think that way." She said, shaking her head.
"I'm not blind, Ryouko. I know what you did." He answered, his tone suddenly changing.
Ryouko was surprised at his voice and kept quiet. Ryoma continued and this time, his voice is much softer. "You shouldn't have done that."
"What do you mean I shouldn't? Why can't I? You'll do the same for me if the situation is reversed." Ryouko reasoned, her eyebrows knitting together.
"I can but you can't." Ryoma told her, his tone rising again.
Ryouko gave a small uneasy laugh. She felt insulted. "Why? Because you think that I can't handle saving people?"
"That's not what I'm talking about!" Ryoma half-yelled, a look of frustration evident in his eyes.
"What are you talking about then? Tell me!" Ryouko yelled back.
"I can get hurt but you can't!" He yelled, turning sideways to face her. "You shouldn't get hurt. Not for me. Not for anyone. Not even for yourself." He added, meeting her eyes squarely.
Ryouko blinked. She didn't know what to say in response to that.
Ryoma looked away and turned his face to the other side so she won't see it. "How many times do I have to tell you that you don't have to do everything by yourself? You're so hard-headed, it's not even funny anymore." He said softly.
Ryouko bit her lower lip in frustration. What should she say? "I get it. I'm sorry." She finally said.
"Don't apologize. You didn't do anything wrong. I'm the one who should apologize." Ryoma said.
"No. I'm the one who should be sorry. For making you feel that way." Ryouko said.
Ryoma looked sideways to face her again. "I'm the one who should be apologetic. I haven't even thanked you yet from blocking that ball for me."
Ryouko started to protest. "No, I am—" Ryoma held up a forefinger to her lips to make her silent.
He looked at her, some of that playful glint back in his eyes. He smiled. "Stop it. If we keep this up, it'll be endless." He told her.
Ryouko smiled back. "Right. We should stop before we embarrass ourselves."
They were enveloped in silence as they stared at the sun slowly coming down to the mountains. Well, it's not surprising that they've almost exhausted the whole day for the matches. They also took two hours of lunch break right in the middle of it. It must only be an hour or so before the sun sets.
"Today is quite tiring, don't you think?" Ryoma commented.
"Yeah. Especially for me. Do you know how hard it is to prance around wearing a wedding dress?" Ryouko replied.
Ryoma let out a silent snort. "It looked to me that it wasn't that hard since Atobe always carried you. During lunchtime, the Team 2 boys waited on your hand and foot, getting you a plate and serving you food."
Ryouko casted a side glance at him. "What's this? Were you jealous?" She asked, a cheeky grin forming on her lips.
"Ha! Jealous? Are you crazy? I was pitying them." Ryoma retorted.
Ryouko placed her elbows on her thighs and rested her chin on the closed fist of her right hand so she can stare at Ryoma properly.
The boy caught her looking and asked, "What the heck are you staring at?"
"You know, I didn't imagine that you'll look this good in a tuxedo." She answered.
Ryoma gave a scoff and a smile. "What are you trying to do? Are you going for flattery because you want to ask something from me?"
"No, I'm not kidding. You really do look very good in that suit. I always see my cousins wear tuxedos in formal events and I've imagined you in one, but I never thought you'd look this dashing. My heart skipped a bit when you caught my arm at the courts when I almost fell." She said, smiling teasingly.
"Tch. Stop lying." Ryoma said, rolling his eyes. His fingers curled into a fist slowly and he could hear his heartbeat quickening. It pumped on his ears, getting louder.
"I am not lying. Want to see for yourself?" Ryouko said and suddenly reached over to take his right hand.
"Hey!" Ryoma protested. His eyes widened as Ryouko pressed his palm over the left side of her chest.
"See? It's beating fast. You do have potential of being a ladies' man even though you look like a pineapple with a face." She said, pressing her palm over the back of his hand.
Ryoma was frozen solid for a second. That horribly long second passed and he pulled his hand away from her with more force than needed.
"What are you doing? Stop it! We're not kids anymore!" He blurted out in anger and embarrassment.
Ryouko blinked, wondering why he sounded mad. "You're so sensitive nowadays."
Ryoma was perplexed. "Sensitive? I'm not being sensitive. You're the one being ridiculous!" He said, avoiding to meet her eyes. "Just... what are you making me touch?" He added, his voice soft and hesitant.
Ryouko finally figured out what was wrong and her eyes faltered. She blinked repeatedly as her arms subconsciously covered her chest. That's right... She... have breasts now. She shouldn't just— That was a stupid thing to do.
They turned away from each other, their backs facing. The uncomfortable silence dragged for a minute and a half but none of them had the courage to say anything.
"Stupid! Idiot! Ryouko you blundering retard! Just what did you do?" Ryouko scolded herself, the blood rushing to her face. She racked her brain for something, anything, to say. Should she stand up and say that she'll go ahead? No, that would make facing him tomorrow all the more torturous... Should she turn to him and laugh? Say that she's only kidding? Make a joke?
"By the way..." Ryoma suddenly said, his voice breaking through her thoughts. Ryouko looked at him over her shoulder.
Ryoma was still looking uncomfortable and his cheeks were tinged pink. He hesitantly scratched his chin with one forefinger as if thinking whether he should talk or not.
"You seem to be flatter there than I expected... There's supposed to be two mountains, but there's only two really low hills..." He said, emphasizing on the 'really' part.
Ryouko's face burned all the way to the roots of her dark hair. "How rude! My mother told me that it's just the right size for the age of twelve! They're still growing!" She said in mad outburst.
Ryoma's wide bronze-gold eyes met her angry rust-colored ones and they both burst out laughing.
"Well, that was ridiculous." Ryouko commented, wiping tears of laughter from the corner of her almond-shaped eyes.
Ryoma shook his head. "Seriously, we're both acting stupid." He said.
"Ryoma." Ryouko called him, smiling good-naturedly. "All jokes aside, I want you to say that you're okay. I have to hear it directly from you."
"Why?" Ryoma asked, although he already had an idea. "You're not thinking of that incident are you?" He added, letting the cat out of the bag.
Ryouko began to answer. "I am thinking about it, and I just want to say, for the hundredth time... It's not your fault that the accident happened. It's not Ichidou's fault either. No one is at fault. We're just..." She paused thinking of the right word for it. "...really unfortunate. It was an unfortunate accident. No one wanted it to happen."
"I know that. But I just can't forget it that easily. After all the damage it did to you... I just can't..." He told her, shaking his head lightly, his eyes soft but sincere.
Ryouko shifted from her seat and took both of Ryoma's hands on hers. "That's okay. I'm not asking you to forget it. I'm asking for you to not get hurt from it. That won't be easy... But I'll help. I promise that I won't get into scrapes anymore. I won't get hurt again. At least not in front of you."
"You won't get hurt again. Period. Even if I'm not around." Ryoma corrected her.
Ryouko smiled. "Okay. Even if you're not around, I won't get hurt." She took the little finger of Ryoma's right hand and intertwined it with her own in a pinky swear.
"Promise?" Ryoma said with a smile.
Ryouko nodded. "Promise." She said.
They looked at each other's eyes, both serious and playful at the same time. It was just like when they were eight, only there's something different added.
"You're not going to put my hands anywhere weird again, are you?" Ryoma suddenly said.
The glint in Ryouko's eyes changed and she pushed him away. He slipped from the stone he is sitting on and hit the ground, laughing.
Ryouko stood up stiffly. "Here I am, being serious and sincere for once in my life and you do your best to ruin the moment." She said before turning around, flipping her hair behind her moodily.
Ryoma was still laughing as he picked himself up from the ground. "Hey! I'm sorry! I was only joking!" He yelled at her in between chuckles.
Ryouko left without another glance at him, marching quite stiffly. After she rounded the corner, he ceased his laughter.
He felt kind of detached – neutral, as he realized the things that were supposed to be obvious. He stared at his right palm.
Almost four years had passed. He and Ryouko had grown. Some things hadn't changed and will probably never change... but some things did. Including the fact that he had to be careful where he's touching.
~~~
Sakuno was spacing out as she cooked dinner that night. She almost placed a bag of green peas in her miso soup. Kurobane barely made it in time to snatch the bag away from her.
"What's wrong, Sakuno-chan? You seem to be out of focus." Kurobane told her.
"No. It's nothing... I guess I'm just tired." She answered with a low voice.
"I think you should rest up, Sakuno-chan. Leave this to us. Dinner's almost done anyway. The soup is the only one missing." Kikumaru said.
"Thank you, senpai." Sakuno replied and took off her apron.
As she ate her dinner, she couldn't help but think of how Ryoma got angry at her earlier. Well, it was obvious. Of course he'll get angry. He told her to stay still and she didn't do that.
And also... Sakuno bit her lower lip. Ryouko got hurt. All the more reason for him to be angry. She's his childhood friend. It's natural for him to be angry.
The image of Ryouko and Ryoma hugging on the court popped inside her mind. Are they really just childhood friends? Just what kind of childhood friends are they? How long have they known each other?
And that hug... Was that a friendly hug? It sure didn't look like that to her eyes.
As a matter of fact, it was not just her. As they ate dinner, people flocked over Ryoma and teased him endlessly about what happened between him and Ryouko on the court.
"Hey, Echizen. What's your relationship with Team 2's Ryouko? Is she your girlfriend or something?" Kai told him.
"Yeah, yeah... Tell us." Ishida said, but he wasn't looking too jolly. "You have to tell us." He added. "So I can tell Shinji." He said inside his mind. Shinji's girl shouldn't already be taken. Their Shinji shouldn't get a heartbreak at such an early age. Well, since even wives can get stolen, Shinji can steal Ryouko if she and Echizen are dating. "But first, I have to give him the status report." He thought.
"Since when did my private life begin to be a topic of interest among you guys? Don't you have anything better to do?" Ryoma told them.
"Private life! He just said 'private life'! That means you admit it!" Kai said, snapping his fingers.
Ryoma rolled his eyes. "What kind of a brain do you have for you to register my words as that? Sheesh. Just eat, please. Your dinner's getting cold." He told him.
Sakuno tightened her grip at the spoon. She have to do something. Anything. To clarify things... Make everything clear.
For that to happen, she should talk to Ryouko.
"I'll call her out tonight. And make things clear." She thought and began gathering her dishes. "Gochisomadeshita. (Thank you for the food.)" She said before standing up and lifting her tray.
~~~
Senri stared at his phone, more specifically at the message on the screen. They had just came back from dinner and he was lying down on his bed with the phone in his hand.
During dinner, Ryouko was looking really radiant as she served their dishes to them, as if something happened that made her really happy.
Nobody dared to speak a word of what occurred between her and Ryoma on the court. Mizuki was trying to bring it up when she banged a pitcher on the table in front of him with a deafening bang. She turned a fake smiling face at Mizuki.
"You were saying?" She said in an awfully sugar-coated tone.
"Nothing. Not important. Forget that I opened my mouth." Mizuki answered, his curly hair standing on ends, absolutely terrified.
Senri was not at all pleased. First, he had to overhear her conversation with Tezuka-buchou. Second, he had to see her hugging Echizen Ryoma in broad daylight in front of everyone. Just what is the deal with her?
Ryouko had texted them from a new number, explaining that her phone was sent out for repair. She was informing them that there will be extra training at 10:30 pm until 12 midnight separate to their daily routine. That means that they have to train at that time and still get up at 4 o'clock tomorrow and have their running and agility exercises.
"Just how hard is she planning to make us train for her to be satisfied?" He thought, anger bubbling at his gut.
He had to get to the bottom of this. This is not right. If she really is just doing the instructor thing for her own benefit, the others have the right to know too.
He started to type out a text message. 'Guys, meet me in the meeting place thirty minutes before Ryouko's call time. I have to tell you something... Something important about Ryouko.'
His thumb hovered over the send icon. If he do this, there's no telling what the others will think. There's no predicting what will happen to their bonds with Ryouko. Even so... He shouldn't be the only one suffering, just because he's unfortunate enough to overhear it.
"I shouldn't have gone to the courts that night. I shouldn't have heard it, then I could've stayed blissfully ignorant like the other guys." But he did, and there's no changing that. He pressed 'send'. There's no turning back now.
The storm brews even nearer! Which storm??? The unexpected beating of Atobe Keigo's heart, Sakuno's night confrontation or Senri's plan to tell the freshmen of what he had overheard between Ryouko and Tezuka?
Tune in for next week's update!
I hope you enjoyed this chapter guys! XD XD I wrote it with lots of love!